Zhang Cheng was high in spirits as he stepped on the stool with one leg.
He puffed out his chest, straightened his back and pointed a finger. Then he began to sing.
“Back in the days, I had a horse, I had a spear. I dumped my girl, I left Shangyang, and I went to the capital, to temper my style…”
Zhou Yi had been living in Luojing for nearly a year, and he had paid many visits to theaters. He did not want to go, but his colleagues’ repeated invitations left him with no choice.
In the workplace, socializing was inevitable.
Having seen and heard much, he had gained some understanding of Great Qian’s theater plays. A cultivator’s extraordinary retentive memory worked wonders in studies of any sort.
Right now, Zhang Cheng was singing in Luojing’s local theater style. Melodious voice, mellow charm; he was by no means any inferior to the famous professionals.
This passage was from a play called “Youth Tour”. The legend was adapted from the experience of Taizu when he was a teenager. He ventured to the capital alone, fought corrupt officials, vanquished demons, and came all the way from an unknown person to someone who was respected in Fengyang Kingdom.
At that time, Luojing was not Great Qian’s capital city but belonged to the Fengyang Kingdom which was one of the countries on the Yun Continent.
Before Zhang Cheng’s voice faded, Chief Editor Chen stepped forward, out his hands behind his head, and leaned back casually.
Chief Editor Chen’s posture was firm and accurate. He had to be a regular visitor in theaters.
“Don’t mention the magnificent tall palaces, nor the unceasing demons and ghosts. When I down this mug of wine, I will never stop until I kill the leader of my foes…”
Singing the passage, it appeared that he was no lesser than Zhang Cheng. He had the demeanor of a literato and a general who was an equally accomplished man of literature.
Their colleagues applauded. Chief Editor Chen, who was an orthodox Scholar, could talk about poetry, and even sing in opera style.
Zhang Cheng, as the team leader of the Resource Division, quickly infected people with his enthusiasm. Many of the storeroom officers, coroners, could not resist the alluring aroma of tea leaves and joined in as they passed by.
Only now did Zhou Yi realize that there were hundreds of people working in the Resource Division, and this crowd was just a fraction of them.
Most of the people there were in sixth-grade to fourth-grade of the Qi Refining stage, and a few were lower-third-grade Body Refining Cultivators. All of them had complicated backgrounds.
Time flies when you’re having fun.
It was already noon when everyone dispersed.
Seeing that Chief Editor Chen was about to leave, Zhou Yi quickly approached him and said, “My Lord, I would like to take a leave of absence for today and tomorrow.”
Chief Editor Chen nodded and agreed, “Got it. Make sure you tell Zhang what to do, lest he submits another one of his ineligible scrawling.”
The Resource Division was on duty throughout the year and only had one day off on New Year’s Eve. Staff were required to take annual leave at other times.
Zhou Yi told Zhang Cheng the news and then left the Resource Division.
Tongfu Inn.
Hu Jiuying stood behind the counter. Because of her short stature, she had to stand on a short bench.
She was holding the white fox Feng Ling’er in her arms. With the Immortal Fox’s fur concealing Feng Ling’er’s aura, the cultivators at the Qi Refining stage only thought of her as an ordinary pet fox even when they looked at her directly.
The shop was full of customers, but the strange thing was that they were all silent as they gorged on fried chicken.
“Milady, what do you think? One-third of an acre of land in the capital. Let’s make our words count!”
Not knowing what kind of panacea Xu Yue had taken, the injuries on his face and his right leg had healed overnight.
Hu Jiuying smiled and was about to speak, but when she saw Zhou Yi standing outside the door, her expression altered abruptly. She waved her hand impatiently.
“Go away, don’t disturb me, or I’ll break all three of your legs!”
Xu Ye could not figure out how he had made Hu Jiuying mad again. When he heard that she was going to break three of his legs, he ran out while whistling in fright.
The diners in the inn stood up, exited the inn silently, and queued up in a neat line outside.
“Come back! I’m about to leave and since your services have been on point so far, I have a gift for you as a souvenir.”
Hu Jiuying stopped Xu Ye and touched the back of his head. A pinch of silver-white fox fur appeared in his hand.
Xu Ye took the fox fur and said while frowning, “Milady, why do you have white hair at such a young age…”
“Piss off!”
Hu Jiuying waved her hand, and Xu Ye flew out and knocked over the several rows of diners waiting outside.
Xu Ye screamed in pain as he got up. He saw Zhou Yi who was smiling at the door, yelled at him like a thug, “What are you looking at? I’m practicing my Qing-gong, you get me?”
Zhou Yi shook his head and walked into the inn. Hu Jiuying who was extremely observant helped Senior Zhou clean up the dishes.
“Have you confirmed it?”
“Yes. He has always been in Fuzhou County.”
Via her relationship with Xu Ye, Hu Jiuying quickly found out where Feng Zhen was serving at.
…
Fuzhou County.
On the eastern edge of Luozhou, on the edge of Yangping Lake, there was a vast wave of smoke that spanned eight hundred miles.
County magistrates served in terms of three years and would be promoted and demoted according to their performance in the imperial examination.
Feng Zhen was a successful candidate in the imperial examinations at the provincial level. Hence, a county magistrate was already his limit, and he had no hope of being promoted. Relying on his wife’s family, he had been serving in Fuzhou County.
The Fuzhou County was mountainous, and none of its lands was over three feet wide. The Yangping Lake had high water levels and was covered by smog.
The population here was sparse, and the people were poor. This place was classified as the poorest of county towns.
But the people there were happy that Feng Zhen was willing to stay and serve the county.
Two streaks of light flashed across the sky like meteors in the day.
The fishermen in the lake saw it. Some superstitious ones hurriedly put their hands together and prayed. In Great Qian, meteorites were considered as bad omens that foretold violence and natural disasters.
The sailors on one of the bigger boats saw the meteors becoming brighter and brighter, and when they got closer, they could see that they were actually a man and a woman.
“It’s the Immortal Master!”
There were cheers on the deck. The Immortal Master’s had an excellent reputation in Great Qian. People believed that the Immortal Master had protected commoners by vanquishing demons.
The man had a sallow complexion. His hair was grey. He was wearing a black scale armor and had a golden mace on his waist. His eyes swept across the people on the boat like electricity, domineering even without the presence of rage.
The woman looked like a teenager. She was charming, adorable, and was holding a white fox in her arms.
It was Zhou Yi and Hu Jiuying.
Zhou Yi used the transformation technique to alter his appearance and figure. The armor on his body and the golden mace on his waist were magic items he had obtained via demon vanquishing.
Hu Jiuying was largely unsurprised about this. Most Sacred Immortals had unusual temperaments. In her knowledge, the Immortal Fox altered her identity between male and female many times to live in the mortal world.
The boatmen and sailors gathered behind the steward to welcome the arrival of the Immortal Master.
Zhou Yi descended at the bow and asked, “May I ask which direction leads to Fuzhou County?”
After the steward pondered this question, he replied, “Immortal Master, I’m Shi Sinian, Inspector of Fuzhou County’s Inspection Department. May I ask why you wish to visit the County Office?”
Inspectors were ninth-grade officers, a post that was barely considered as being a Great Qian official.
“Mr. Inspector, why are you dressed like this?”
Zhou Yi looked at Shi Sinian from head to foot. Linen shorts, rough calluses on his hands and feet; he did not look like an official at all.
Unleashing the Qi Inspection Technique, he saw a green aura with a tinge of purple. This person had an officer’s fortune.
Shi Sinian looked rather embarrassed. “You may not know, Immortal Master, the county magistrate, Lord Feng, made me responsible for fishing. The official attire is cumbersome and inconvenient, so this is the attire I opted for when working.”
Zhou Yi immediately recalled the Qi Inspection Technique and saluted him solemnly.
“I misjudged you. You are a good officer, Inspector Shi.”
Shi Sinian shook his head and said, “I’m not worthy of your praise. Lord Feng is the good officer. I’m no more than a person who executes his plans.”
Zhou Yi originally planned to leave after asking for directions, but suddenly became intrigued when he heard this.
“Do you think that Magistrate Feng is a good officer, Inspector Shi?”
“Of course he is. Lord Feng is Fuzhou County’s just and incorruptible official.”
Shi Sinian said, “If it weren’t for Lord Feng, we wouldn’t have dared to come to the Yangping Lake to fish. Even this giant boat was built by Lord Feng himself. It’s imbued with magic.”
The boatmen and sailors had mingled around with Shi Sinian for a long time and hence, no longer feared him for the position he held. They could not help but talk out loud.
“I heard that Lord Feng went to the bottom of the lake to negotiate with the Dragon King. Only then were we allowed to fish here.”
“There’s also a Dragon King Temple that was erected by the lake, and offerings are given every year. I think we should build one for Lord Feng as well.”
“Only the dead are built temples. How are you supposed to give offerings to a man who’s very much alive? Are you cursing Lord Feng?”
“Ptooey! This cursed mouth of mine!”
“…”
Zhou Yi’s eyes flashed with inspiration, and he asked, “I consider myself rather close with Lord Feng, and in my knowledge, he does not cultivate. The Dragon King of the Lake shouldn’t answer to his request.”
Officials and Gods of the Great Qian Dynasty belong to two groups of people that do not disturb each other.
The City God and Earth God were still fine. They were virtuous people before death, and they were willing to protect the realm of the living upon their passing.
Water Gods and Mountain Gods were mostly spirits living in the mountains and waters who had unpredictable personalities. In a harsher definition, they were demons who did not commit evil. In order to appease them, the imperial court named them Water Gods and Mountain Gods.
Officials and Gods of the imperial court were not under the control of each other. The Mountain Gods and Water Gods wanted to do nothing. Even when a Prefecture Governor showed up, they would, likewise, be too lazy to pay any attention to them.
Of course, most officials at the prefecture and county level were not only tyrannical, but they also had the Deity-worshipping Department and Demon Slaying Department to back them up. The spirits of the mountains and waters had no choice but to obey their orders.
Shi Sinian hesitated for a moment, and out of respect for the Immortal Master, he vaguely said, “I heard that the family of the magistrate’s wife is quite powerful in the capital.”
Zhou Yi immediately understood that Feng Zhen betrayed Feng Ling’er and her mother in order to marry a new wife.
In Hu Jiuniang’s memory, the woman was the daughter of the Minister of Rites.
Zhou Yi asked, “Inspector Shi, is Lord Feng in the County Office right now?”
Shi Sinian shook his head and said, “We’re having our monthly fish market today. I’m sure that Lord Feng is at west city supervising the trading merchants.”
“Got it. Farewell.”
After Zhou Yi finished speaking, he morphed into escaping light with Hu Jiuying and flew towards Fuzhou.
Shi Sinian looked enviously at the escaping lights. It could only be used when one was at least at middle-third-grade of the Qi Refining stage. He basically had no hopes of using the technique in his entire life.
The imperial court issued techniques suitable for officials to cultivate in, and allocated cultivation resources and aid of fortune according to their rank.
However, the number of officials in the lower-third-grade was the most abundant, and yet, their resource allocation was the least. Basically, they would receive nearly nothing.
Shi Sinian had been an Inspector for more than ten years, but he was only in eighth-grade in the Way of Martial Arts. Given his advancing age, there was no hope for him to further improve.